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looking for an update on how you are liking your grd camera.
are you using it as much as before or more?
has it been a worthwhile addition to your camera bag?
pros and cons that you have found in using it.
and yes, it's still on my 'might want to own someday' list.
joe
are you using it as much as before or more?
has it been a worthwhile addition to your camera bag?
pros and cons that you have found in using it.
and yes, it's still on my 'might want to own someday' list.
joe
peter_n
Veteran
Interested to hear what ray_g has to say on this subject...
kbg32
neo-romanticist
I have had my GRD for a few months. It is a wonderful pocket camera. The files are beautifu, no shutter lag, and I really enjoy the 21mm wide angle converter. This was my reason for purchasing this camera. The write times are slow in RAW mode, but that's my only compalint. I always have in my pocket/bag where ever I go. You won't regret the purchase.
R
ray_g
Guest
I like the GRD. It's role in my bag is that previously filled by my Ricoh GR1, and it does that very well. It is probably the one camera I take with me most of the time, because of its size. Even then, it is not limiting in terms of what it can do, as long as you are comfortable with the focal length.
These days, I have been playing more with the R-D1, but the GRD is there in the bag. Even when I go out with the DSLR, it is the backup. It uses the same SD cards, so that's convenient. And I certainly am not buying a second digital body (RF or SLR) just for backup.
Again, I am comfortable with finishing the trip, for example, with just a 28mm should my other equipment fail. That is what I did with the GR - in fact it WAS my 28mm. I never brought a 28mm lens with my M body/bodies.
These days, I have been playing more with the R-D1, but the GRD is there in the bag. Even when I go out with the DSLR, it is the backup. It uses the same SD cards, so that's convenient. And I certainly am not buying a second digital body (RF or SLR) just for backup.
Again, I am comfortable with finishing the trip, for example, with just a 28mm should my other equipment fail. That is what I did with the GR - in fact it WAS my 28mm. I never brought a 28mm lens with my M body/bodies.
R
ray_g
Guest
kbg32 said:
Yeah, just don't get the "sky blue" one.
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it seems the price on these has come down a bit.
anyone know what the software upgrade does?
joe
anyone know what the software upgrade does?
joe
mrtoml
Mancunian
I wrote a few articles on my blog about the GRD which I have owned for several months:
http://alt-digital.blogspot.com/
I am not using it much at the moment as I have started using a Bessa and I'm enjoying playing around with analogue again. I also had a problem with dust getting inside the camera onto the sensor.
The GRD is a generally good camera and very portable. I used to carry it everywhere. Files are nice for a compact. It has a nice but expensive viewfinder. Lack of RAW is a serious drawback (unless you are prepared to wait 14 seconds). I find it is easy to blow the highlights in bright conditions. It is pretty good in low light. The depth of field is pretty uncontrollable.
Film is still better
http://alt-digital.blogspot.com/
I am not using it much at the moment as I have started using a Bessa and I'm enjoying playing around with analogue again. I also had a problem with dust getting inside the camera onto the sensor.
The GRD is a generally good camera and very portable. I used to carry it everywhere. Files are nice for a compact. It has a nice but expensive viewfinder. Lack of RAW is a serious drawback (unless you are prepared to wait 14 seconds). I find it is easy to blow the highlights in bright conditions. It is pretty good in low light. The depth of field is pretty uncontrollable.
Film is still better
jvr
Well-known
Gr-d
Gr-d
Hi!
I bought mine on December last year, so this is only a first opinion: cameras are like people, sometimes we have to change opinion when we know them better...
As an aside, I also own the Ricoh GR-1 and I really liked it (I haven't used for a while, that's the reason for the past tense) and that was one of the main reasons why I bought the GR-D.
I wanted a camera that I could take anywhere, with a wide lens (38mm on 135 does not cut it for me as the limit...), good image quality (lens + sensor + software) and optical viewfinder. The GR-D seemed to fit bill, except for the last requirement. But it has a flash/accessory socket and the 28/35 VF from Cosina/Voigtlander is oh-so-cute and fits the GR-D even better than the "original" VF, IMHO.
Ergonomically, it works very well, (almost) no complaints until now. I keep the LCD only for reviewing. The CV VF matches the FOV of 3:2 format very well. When I need to focus on something very close, just turn on the LCD and use it. Flash will try to open on auto mode and sometimes your fingers will be over it... Having the same door for SD and battery is strange for those who use a card reader (I do...) as the battery will be loose everytime you acess the card.
Battery is well behaved, flash is useful for fill-in and even powerful enough for main light (but ugly shadows, etc). The camera has two controlling wheels, one for the index finger and one for the thumb and they can control the menus (just like the D80). I have to say I just love this, using the menus is incredibly fast and ergonomic.
Felt (and still feel) quite at home after a few years with the GR-1. Never read the manual, still didn't need it.
Image quality is outstanding for a compact but gets noisier over 200 ISO. That's to be expected, really. I'm used to the Epson R-D1s and that's probably the problem... There are no miracles and the GR-D is far from the perfomance of my Nikon D80 or even my Nikon D100 (not to mention the Epson) regarding noise over 200 ISO. But none of them would fit my shirt pocket with a 18/2.5 mounted... And it's better than my Coolpix 5200 on this regard. Noise tends to be like "grain" and not like the "colour patches" you get in some other compacts. I use NeatImage for noise reduction / sharpening and it does a very good job on GR-D jpg files.
The lens is quite good at 2.5 and improves when closing down. You can control everything.
If you want top quality, you can shoot RAW (DNG) but the camera gets very slow. So slow it's annoying, if you are not expecting it. Using DNG you get a definite boost on quality (both detail and noise). For things like landscape, architecture, etc, the raw delay is no problem at all.
A funny thing is that I use three CV 28/35 VFs: one on the GR-D, another on the M3 (silver) and still another (black) on the Epson (for my Zeiss 21/2.8 Biogon). So, all my three mostly used camers feel the same (in a way) to me.
All in all, I'm very happy with it as my "go-with-me-everywhere" camera. There are lots of pictures I would not get any other way. I recommend it, no doubt. Just don't think you'll get Epson/Leica/DSLR quality with it without some effort (you can!) and you won't be disappointed.
I attach a picture I just made of the GR-D+CV VF together with the Epson R-D1s (with the CV VF and the 21/2.8 Biogon), the Leica M3 (with CV VF and the 35/3.5 Summaron/hood) and the Nikon D80 with the Sigma 20/1.8, to compare looks and sizes. We have to admit the GR-D is a small camera, indeed.
I can post a few photos from the GR-D but I have no direct comparison with other cameras. If you don't bother seeing boring pictures I can always take a few photos of my bookshelf with each one and post them...
Gr-d
Hi!
I bought mine on December last year, so this is only a first opinion: cameras are like people, sometimes we have to change opinion when we know them better...
As an aside, I also own the Ricoh GR-1 and I really liked it (I haven't used for a while, that's the reason for the past tense) and that was one of the main reasons why I bought the GR-D.
I wanted a camera that I could take anywhere, with a wide lens (38mm on 135 does not cut it for me as the limit...), good image quality (lens + sensor + software) and optical viewfinder. The GR-D seemed to fit bill, except for the last requirement. But it has a flash/accessory socket and the 28/35 VF from Cosina/Voigtlander is oh-so-cute and fits the GR-D even better than the "original" VF, IMHO.
Ergonomically, it works very well, (almost) no complaints until now. I keep the LCD only for reviewing. The CV VF matches the FOV of 3:2 format very well. When I need to focus on something very close, just turn on the LCD and use it. Flash will try to open on auto mode and sometimes your fingers will be over it... Having the same door for SD and battery is strange for those who use a card reader (I do...) as the battery will be loose everytime you acess the card.
Battery is well behaved, flash is useful for fill-in and even powerful enough for main light (but ugly shadows, etc). The camera has two controlling wheels, one for the index finger and one for the thumb and they can control the menus (just like the D80). I have to say I just love this, using the menus is incredibly fast and ergonomic.
Felt (and still feel) quite at home after a few years with the GR-1. Never read the manual, still didn't need it.
Image quality is outstanding for a compact but gets noisier over 200 ISO. That's to be expected, really. I'm used to the Epson R-D1s and that's probably the problem...
There are no miracles and the GR-D is far from the perfomance of my Nikon D80 or even my Nikon D100 (not to mention the Epson) regarding noise over 200 ISO. But none of them would fit my shirt pocket with a 18/2.5 mounted... And it's better than my Coolpix 5200 on this regard. Noise tends to be like "grain" and not like the "colour patches" you get in some other compacts. I use NeatImage for noise reduction / sharpening and it does a very good job on GR-D jpg files.The lens is quite good at 2.5 and improves when closing down. You can control everything.
If you want top quality, you can shoot RAW (DNG) but the camera gets very slow. So slow it's annoying, if you are not expecting it. Using DNG you get a definite boost on quality (both detail and noise). For things like landscape, architecture, etc, the raw delay is no problem at all.
A funny thing is that I use three CV 28/35 VFs: one on the GR-D, another on the M3 (silver) and still another (black) on the Epson (for my Zeiss 21/2.8 Biogon). So, all my three mostly used camers feel the same (in a way) to me.
All in all, I'm very happy with it as my "go-with-me-everywhere" camera. There are lots of pictures I would not get any other way. I recommend it, no doubt. Just don't think you'll get Epson/Leica/DSLR quality with it without some effort (you can!) and you won't be disappointed.
I attach a picture I just made of the GR-D+CV VF together with the Epson R-D1s (with the CV VF and the 21/2.8 Biogon), the Leica M3 (with CV VF and the 35/3.5 Summaron/hood) and the Nikon D80 with the Sigma 20/1.8, to compare looks and sizes. We have to admit the GR-D is a small camera, indeed.
I can post a few photos from the GR-D but I have no direct comparison with other cameras. If you don't bother seeing boring pictures I can always take a few photos of my bookshelf with each one and post them...
Attachments
back alley
IMAGES
thanks for the updates/info!
still undecided about this camera, if i paid attention to just the reviews i would walk away, if i paid attention to just owners i am much more attracted to it and the pics i've seen on the web make me want it now!
i think i would find it easier to have more cameras if i had more time/opportunity for shooting.
as it is now, i see more cameras as competition for my time.
joe
still undecided about this camera, if i paid attention to just the reviews i would walk away, if i paid attention to just owners i am much more attracted to it and the pics i've seen on the web make me want it now!
i think i would find it easier to have more cameras if i had more time/opportunity for shooting.
as it is now, i see more cameras as competition for my time.
joe
jvr
Well-known
back alley said:
So very true!
I've been trying to use at least one of my "unused" cameras (mainly the Konica Hexar AF, the Rolleiflex and film Nikons) per week. Not easy, especially with some new toys around.
That's not the way I use my GR-D. I don't "go out" shooting with it (as I do with other cameras). I just carry it with me all the way, even when I don't have another camera.
So, it does not "compete" with other cameras! Ok, it replaced the Coolpix 5200, now (happily!) used by my daughter. But the Coolpix 5200 is no competition for the GR-D...
ywenz
Veteran
Still love mine.. mostly these reasons (in order of importance): size, control, image quality.
Check out this guy's GRD shots... amazing!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/dos-chin/tags/grd/
Check out this guy's GRD shots... amazing!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/dos-chin/tags/grd/
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thanks for the link.
i really like how the grd does b&w, with great contrast.
it's very tempting.
joe
i really like how the grd does b&w, with great contrast.
it's very tempting.
joe